Please refer to the operator’s manual first. If your manual is not available or it is unclear, each toner cartridge or machine has instructions printed on them for installing toner.

Otherwise, please find your copier listed below and follow the instructions. If you are still unclear, before you proceed, contact us and we can either talk you through the installation, email instructions or fax them to you.

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2. How do I install staples?
Never remove the staples or the staple holder until the machine calls for them. Doing so will result in jammed or wasted staples. All sorters or finishers have printed instructions on the inside of the staple cover and also in the manual. Please refer to it first.

Do not throw away the plastic cartridges or holders, unless the instructions tell you to do so! Most sorters have refills for the staple cartridges. The staples are simply inserted into the plastic cartridges and then placed into the sorter or finisher. Without the plastic cartridge, the stapler will not work and replacements are often costly.

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3. What is the Waste Toner Bottle?
The waste toner bottle is a container that holds the used toner powder. This powder is not harmful, although we don’t recommend eating it or rolling around in it. (MSDS sheets are available upon request.)

Waste toner bottles are usually located in the front of machines, although some are located in the rear of the machine and can only be accessed by a service technician. Most are either clear or black in color. When the machine tells you to empty the waste toner bottle or shows a symbol that resembles bowling pins in a box with an arrow going away from the pins, you need to empty or replace the bottle.

Do not throw the bottle away, unless you have another one handy. Many copiers have waste toner bottles that can simply be emptied and returned to the machine. Do not operate a copier without this bottle in place. Some copiers will not operate and some the door or cover will not close. Without this bottle in place, toner will fall into the machine, causing black spots or lines on copies and a black, powdery mess inside the machine and paper drawers.

If waste toner gets onto your clothes, carpet or floor, wipe as much off as you can with a clean, dry paper towel or rag. Next, dampen a paper towel or rag with cold water and gently wipe. When done, wipe again with a dry rag or towel. Do not wipe or clean anything from the inside of the copier. Please call or email us for service.

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4. Where is the meter?
The meter is a counter that keeps track of how many copies you have made. This meter, whether hard or soft, can not reset or go in reverse.

Some copiers have a hard meter on the front of the machine. It resembles a bike meter. Others may have it inside the front cover.

Other copiers are digital and have meters displayed on the screen or soft meters. For directions on how to obtain your meter reading, go to the Customer Service Tab and click on Meter Readings. At the bottom of the page are instructions for our most popular models. If your model is not listed, simply email or call us for directions on how to obtain your meter.

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5. Where is the model number and the serial number?
Most of our machines have a label on the front of the machine that has the model number and serial number printed on it. If that label has become illegible, is missing or has been removed, most copiers have the model number and serial number on a silver tab on the back of the machine. Be careful not to use the silver tab located anywhere else. They will be for parts and accessories on your copier.

For facsimiles, the model number is printed by the manufacturer on the front or top of the machine. The serial number is located on a silver tab on the left side of the machine at the bottom near the on/off switch or on the rear of the machine. Again, be careful not to use the numbers on a silver tab located anywhere else on the machine. It will be the number for an accessory.

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6. My fax says “Replace Drum Soon”, what does that mean?
If you have an Okidata or Muratec facsimile, then more than likely, you have a separate toner and drum. Many Canon, Toshiba, etc. facsimiles use a toner/drum combination.

For the Okidata and Muratec facsimiles, once a drum has printed the allotted number of pages, an internal counter will produce a message that says, “Change drum soon”. The fax will continue to print and receive faxes.

On certain facsimiles, usually ones that have a toner/drum combination, once the internal counter reaches the maximum number, the fax will stop printing. You may continue to send faxes, that feature is not affected.

If the copy quality is good, you can reset the counter to clear the message and continue to receive faxes. Once the copy quality degrades, you can replace the drum* and reset the counter. The message to replace the drum will not appear again until the maximum number of copies is reached.

To clear the counter on the Oki’s, touch “Select Function” and then touch “Counter”. Scroll to “Clear Drum Counter” and touch “Yes”. Do this each time you change the drum. To reset the counter on other machines, please consult the owner’s manual, email or call us.

*Have an extra toner on hand. When you change the drum, you will need to replace the toner shortly thereafter.

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